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City rejects Occupy Baltimore’s bid to stay though April

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The city has rejected Occupy Baltimore’s request last week for a permit allowing the group to remain at McKeldin Square with as many as 40 tents until April.

The group, Baltimore’s outpost of the Occupy Wall Street movement, had applied last week for a permit, delivering copies of the paperwork to the mayor’s office and the Department of Recreation and Parks.

In rejecting the request, the city was was essentially reiterating its position that “camping is prohibited” and Occupy Baltimore must not remain, said a source at City Hall.

According to The Daily Record, “Parks and Recreation Director Gregory Bayor notes in the denial letter that the department cannot approve permits longer than five days and permits have already been granted to others during the period requested.”

Writing about the permit request denial in the Indypendent Reader, Clayton Conn includes a copy of Bayor’s letter.

Asked why the city was rejecting the permit request, Ryan O’Doherty, a spokesman for Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake replied via email with this statement:

“The City of Baltimore is committed to protecting individuals’ right to protest. However, permanent camping is prohibited in our public parks and individuals are free to peaceably assemble and demonstrate within the currently established guidelines. The City has repeatedly communicated this to individuals on-site and will enforce the camping prohibition at a time of its choosing. The City is committed to providing outreach and assistance to individuals experiencing homelessness.”

Police forces around the country have refined the process of “occupation removal” down to a science. Judging from the recent uneventful removals in LA and Philadelphia, which were much larger than Baltimore, it looks like the Baltimore removal will be quite uneventful. I’m very sure it will all be over before Christmas.

Ktrueheart

So when is our Mayor going to begin a conversation with Occupy Baltimore? Dispatched edicts are not conversations and fail to allow for compromise, negotiations or exceptions. The 99% are citizens and deserve an opportunity to question every decision made by our elected and appointed officials … Did SRB rewite the constitution and neglect to send a press release???

Balt Observer

I don’t think it’s in the Constitution that the Mayor is required to have a conversation with Occupy Baltimore.

And as far as “…deserve an opportunity to question every decision made…”, everyone still has the right to do that. In fact, you’re doing it right now. What people can’t do is run the city government in lieu of the Mayor – who is, after all, the highest ELECTED official in Baltimore. She is elected to run the city government. Occupy Baltimore is not.

Ktrueheart

It’s called “DUE PROCESS” … what’s the appeal process when a permit is denied?

Ktrueheart

Please let me know when she plans to run the part of the City the 99% Occupy …

Anonymous

Baltobserver–It will all be over before Christmas–you hope! One would think that the Occupiers were occupying your front lawn. KTrueheart–corrupt politicos rewrite the Constitution everyday. They are unable to take acre of most of the problems this country faces. But they worry about disease in the Occupy camps. Give me a break. There is disease everywhere–hospitals with lethal infections, sick homeless with no health care, parents who don’t trust the govt and hence too many unvaccinated kids and a resurgence of childhood eradicated diseases but the mayor, the Baltimore Police and the Baltobserver are obsessed with Occupy. They will breathe a sigh of relief when Occupy is removed because Occupy signifies for the business as usual crowd, the turmoil and subterranean discontent they cannot stomach. The way this country is being run there will be tent cities across the land, out of necessity, not out of the need to protest. With the kind of politicians we have running our states into the ground, tent cities will be a natural outgrowth of poverty and unemployment. I think the homeless are learning they can live in these tents too and of course the spineless politicians want them removed. As politicians have done in the Third World for years ditto for politicians here. Get rid of what hurts the eye. Drive it away. Drive it indoors. Send it packing anywhere because it a constant reminder of what you are not achieving. It is a constant thorn in the flesh of the authorities to be faced with the symbolism of their failures.

Ktrueheart

Well stated ushanellore! Flawed policies and ill conceived plans have become acceptable … demands for better outcomes and more inclusive decision making are looming in this one sided conversation. When our elected representative begin to respect US and not show total disdain for our worth, the 99% will stop OCCUPYING what has been co-opted exclusively for the wealthy … the American Dream!

http://www.facebook.com/raymond.bahr Raymond Bahr

Ryan O’Doherty,the Spokesperson for Mayor Stephanie Rawlings,completely misses what the “Occupy Baltimore “Movement is all about. They think that they are (1) dealing with the “homeless” among us and (2) those out of work who need jobs. They completely miss that there has been Criminal Injustice on Wall Street and in our Government that led to the Financial Collapse that we all are trying to recover. They miss out on the fact that the Attorney General of the US has yet to prosecute the Wall Street Group,that the Group continues to exist and take out huge bonuses. The Occupy Baltimore Movement was about bearing witness to this Injustice and that it was this Issue that needed to be addressed by all and for the American People.

I think that Ryan and the Mayor should take a look at “The Newshour” last night to see Bob Ivry from Bloomsberg News tels usl about the wrongful activities of the Treasury Department of the US during the time of the Wall Street Collapse. They should also watch the Documentary “Inside Job” to get more information on this.

I think that the Mayor and Ryan O’Doherty do the citizens a disservice when then unintelligently address the Injustice Concerns. To make condescending comments about “providing outreach and assistance to individuals experiencing homelessness” is really a “Cop Out” for not doing their Homework.

Raymond D.Bahr MD RDB60@aolcom

Balt Observer

You say that the Occupy Baltimore movement is “about bearing witness to this Injustice” re Wall Street bailouts, etc, etc.

From the Baltimore Sun: “The protesters wrote in an application last week that as many as 300 people hoped to stay in square through April. They asked to maintain 44 tents and host performances, including “reggae and other bands on an ad hoc basis” and “street dramas, plays, movies.”

Yeah, it really sounds to me like Occupy Baltimore is really concerned about Wall Street. Sounds more like a Woodstock redux to me.

Instead of telling the Mayor and O’Doherty to do their homework, maybe you should do more of your own.

Ktrueheart

Squarely on point Dr. Bahr … they either don’t get it or choose to spin politically correct (for the donor’s sake) press statements which fail to address the fundamental issue.

Anonymous

Music and bands and doing good work are not mutually exclusive Balt Observer. May be you cannot chew gum and walk at the same time but there are many people in the world juggling those things and more simultaneously. What have you got against music? Most protest in the world was written as music, poetry and speeches. Many stirring speeches and rhymes have been set to music. In the USSR the authorities hated the freedom fighters and the protesters who were also musicians and poets. When the Beatles went to the USSR it was considered a big event among the constipated rulers. Are you a constipated ruler? Take a laxative. A good one is MOM. Unless you are a hopeless case it should work for you.

Anonymous

James Hunt,
GK Chesterton, you quote, as though deploring the bisection of the world into liberals and conservatives and then you revel in the fall of the liberals like you are Newt’s minion in the larva stage. President Obama is not up to the job–true, but neither is the peanut gallery of clowns from the other side. I guess one might deduce that you are a man without a camp, without biases or favorites, merely a traveler, on the fence, observing and mocking every chance you get. If that were the case, the myopia of your observations scream for new correction lenses. Your revelry in the fall of the rascals on the liberal side and your silence about the rascals on the other side–the warmongers, the war profiteers, the prison industrial complex promoters, the oil cartel butt kissers, the ones who never dug up the weapons of mass destruction they went hunting for, tells me you are not a man without a camp. According to you who is up to the job–the unregistered lobbyist Newtie, the slippery salamander who claims he is too rich to be a lobbyist for any side, Herman the Cain who can give the fly always open Billie Clinton a run for his money in the fly always open department, Perry the very sorry bumbler, Mitt who is mostly sitting it out until his coronation or Palin who may jump in the fray because she needs some attention? And are you planning to be Jamie Hunto, a companion to Rudolpho, the red nosed reindeer, when Santa Rawlings Blake, comes into town, her sleigh bells ringing, for the clean up? Then let me know, I would love to see you on all fours, galloping toward the destruction.
Usha Nellore

http://profiles.google.com/jamiehunt344 James Hunt

Usha Nellore wrote:

Usha Nellore wrote: ” … I guess one might deduce that you are a man without a camp, without biases or favorites, merely a traveler, on the fence, observing and mocking every chance you get. If that were the case, the myopia of your observations scream for new correction lenses. …”

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Okay, Usha, ‘fess up: you’re really Seinfeld co-creator Larry David. How else to explain how similar your prose is to the “Secret Code” episode* of that show:

KRAMER: Oh, alright. Yeah. Uh, let’s see. Um, well, we can throw out birthdays immediately. That’s too obvious. And no numbers for you, you’re a word man. Alright, let’s go deeper. Uh, what kind of man are you? Well, you’re weak, spineless, a man of temptations, but what tempts you?GEORGE: Huh?KRAMER: You’re a portly fellow, a bit long in the waistband. So what’s your pleasure? Is it the salty snacks you crave? No no no no no, yours is a sweet tooth.GEORGE: Get out of here.KRAMER: Oh you may stray, but you’ll always return to your dark master, the cocoa bean.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

*Actually, that episode was written by Alec Berg & Jeff Schaffer, but we all know the genius behind it.

Usha/Larry, you’ve been outed!

BOSCO!

http://profiles.google.com/jamiehunt344 James Hunt

Usha Nellore wrote:

Usha Nellore wrote: ” … I guess one might deduce that you are a man without a camp, without biases or favorites, merely a traveler, on the fence, observing and mocking every chance you get. If that were the case, the myopia of your observations scream for new correction lenses. …”

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Okay, Usha, ‘fess up: you’re really Seinfeld co-creator Larry David. How else to explain how similar your prose is to the “Secret Code” episode* of that show:

KRAMER: Oh, alright. Yeah. Uh, let’s see. Um, well, we can throw out birthdays immediately. That’s too obvious. And no numbers for you, you’re a word man. Alright, let’s go deeper. Uh, what kind of man are you? Well, you’re weak, spineless, a man of temptations, but what tempts you?GEORGE: Huh?KRAMER: You’re a portly fellow, a bit long in the waistband. So what’s your pleasure? Is it the salty snacks you crave? No no no no no, yours is a sweet tooth.GEORGE: Get out of here.KRAMER: Oh you may stray, but you’ll always return to your dark master, the cocoa bean.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

*Actually, that episode was written by Alec Berg & Jeff Schaffer, but we all know the genius behind it.

Usha/Larry, you’ve been outed!

BOSCO!

Anonymous

I see James Hunt, what you do in your spare time. They need you in the Occupy Camp to lighten things up. And you need to them to be brought up to speed on realities. You seem to inhabit an alternate Utopia–or should I say Dystopia? That you would be learning by heart the dialogs in sitcoms or be looking them up for edification tells me that sloth be your middle name. How is Rudolpho? I see you are letting him do all the work while you indulge in pedantic babble.

http://profiles.google.com/jamiehunt344 James Hunt

“Utopia”? A fan of St. Thomas More’s book, are you? Brilliant! In the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen, there’s a beautiful chapel dedicated to him and to Thomas O’Neill, the Irish immigrant and philanthropist who owned O’Neill’s Department Store at Charles and Lexington. Employed 500-some people. Story is, that during the Great Baltimore Fire, he prayed the flames wouldn’t take his store. Wind shifted to the southeast, and his store was spared. In gratitude, he left money for the cathedral in his will. A guy who came to this country with nothing left a beautiful legacy. God bless America.

P.S. In between writing for and invoicing clients, I like to visit the Brew because I think Fern, Mark, Gerry, et al, are doing kick-a** work, even if I don’t agree with everything they write. As a bonus, I get Larry David for a pen pal. Life is good. Not “Utopia” but then, what is?

Anonymous

Hunt,
Hopefully Larry David will not hit on the Brew perchance and sue you for violating his unique and special brand of humor by attaching it to one–Usha Nellore. But then if he did sue you that would be nice too. I’ll visit the Thomas O’Neill Chapel, light a candle and pray for Larry David to win that suit. Then you may be taken for all you’ve got and be forced to live in a tent with the occupiers.
Usha Nellore

http://profiles.google.com/jamiehunt344 James Hunt

Usha/Larry:

No votive candles in the More chapel, alas, but there’s a painting of St. Mary’s Industrial School, which O’Neill supported and at which Babe Ruth and Al Jolson were educated. Still, you’re on the right track. More is the patron saint of politicians and lawyers. He was quite a distinguished judge and was known for his learning and sense of humor. He was one of Henry the VIII’s favorites until the King’s restless loins (and possibly incipient syphillus, although a not unreasonable fear of another civil war if he didn’t produce a male heir may have been a factor) overtook the King’s judgment.

I’m grateful in advance for your prayers, and you and your fellow naifs down on McKeldin Plaza may be assured of mine. God looks after drunks, fools, and babies, which pretty much has all of us covered, no?

It would be interesting to know More’s verdict on the Occuperps, who seem more than willing to break laws in the service of whatever it is they’re trying to accomplish. A passage in Robert Bolt’s play about More, A Man for All Seasons, suggests he may have taken issue with the Occupoids’ approach:

“And when the last law was down, and the Devil turned round on you—where would you hide, Roper, the laws all being flat? This country’s planted thick with laws from coast to coast—man’s laws, not God’s—and if you cut them down—and you’re just the man to do it—d’you really think you could stand upright in the winds that would blow then?”

I don’t think the Occupistas flimsy tents would hold up well to that.

At any rate, I’ll retire from this thread by offering you some bits of advice (the first two of which I ripped off from The Princess Bride): 1. Never fight a land war in Asia; 2. Never bet against a Sicilian with death on the line; and 3. Never correspond on the Interwebs with an American of Irish descent.

Say goodnight, Gracie.

Anonymous

The Occupistas flimsy tents will hold up to that and more,
Because in most instances when the letter of the law says no-
The spirit of the law intends yes-
Sir Thomas More should have let Henry’s syphilitic loins
Go where they wanted to go,
That way More would have saved himself his head,
Instead he chose to lecture his way
Into the kingdom of the dead,
It was not the law that More upheld,
It was dogma most unyielding,
As on this thread a penchant for,
Hunt, you’ve also been displaying,
Where there is a law against squatting,
There ought to also be laws against the rotting
of common folks from the plutocrats’ wheeling,
And their outright stealing,
Tell Thomas More from the land of the ghosts,
That when Henry changed the law to fit his loins,
The wind stood still, a new church was born,
And the Devil held his breath,
Though being Irish you’ll declare-
Henry took –a most heretic step,
I would disagree then bid adieu,
And move to another thread,
Or simply to my dreams I’ll go
And lay my head to rest.

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